Bailey Johnson Jr. Timeline and Summary

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Bailey Johnson Jr. Timeline and Summary

  • Bailey is sent with Maya to live with his grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas. That's what we call the Deep South. 
  • Fancy Daddy Bailey (Bailey's dad) suddenly comes to Stamps and takes the children to St. Louis to live with their mother, Vivian. Bailey promptly falls in love with her. To clarify: yes, that's his mom.
  • After Maya gets "sick," Bailey finds her hidden underwear and realizes that she was raped. In the hospital, Maya tells him that Mr. Freeman was the one who raped her. 
  • The children are both sent back to Stamps. Bailey is heartbroken, so he takes up sarcasm and good old-fashioned trickery to comfort himself.
  • One Saturday, Bailey sees an actress in a movie that looks just like Vivian. A few weeks later, he tries (and fails) to hop on a train to see Vivian. When he tries again a year later, he fails even harder and ends up in Baton Rouge.
  • Still missing his Mother Dear, Bailey plays Momma and Poppa with the girls in town until he meets Joyce. She convinces him to have sex with her, but then she skips down and Bailey is back to square one in the love department. 
  • While doing a chore in the white part of town, Bailey sees a black man who was killed. Shortly after, the children are sent back to their mother.
  • As Bailey grows up, he tries to out-alpha male Vivian's friends. He takes up an old prostitute, which ends up getting him kicked out of the house.
  • When Maya gets pregnant, she asks Bailey's advice. He tells her to keep it a secret until after she graduates.